European Athletics Championships – Birmingham – Day 3, August 12
Nicola Tuthill of Ireland competes in the women's hammer throw final during day three of the European Athletics Championships 2026 at Alexander Stadium in Birmingham, England. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
Nicola Tuthill produced a superb fifth-place finish in the women’s hammer final, while Mark English and Rhasidat Adeleke advanced to their respective European finals in style on an excellent third evening for Team Ireland at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham.
Tuthill (UCD AC), the youngest athlete in the hammer final at just 22 years of age, continued to underline her status among Europe’s leading throwers with another impressive major championship performance.
The Paris Olympian opened with a throw of 70.30m, an effort which comfortably secured her place among the top eight and guaranteed her best-ever finish at a major championships as a senior athlete.
Tuthill improved marginally with her fourth-round effort, sending the hammer out to 70.33m to secure an excellent fifth place in Europe.
Speaking after her fifth-place finish, Tuthill said: “I feel really good.
"Obviously, fifth in Europe is insane. I think I was ranked about 10th coming in, so to be able to finish fifth is really, really special.
“But me being me, I’m looking at 72 metres for third and thinking about what might have been.
"Probably everyone in that field is thinking the same thing, but I’m delighted.
“Two years ago I was ninth and this year I’m fifth, so I’m moving in the right direction and I’ve another year of gathering that experience.
"I think I was the youngest person in the field tonight, so it’s really positive.
“The fans have been unbelievable. I probably got one of the loudest cheers.
"There are just so many Irish people here and it really does drive on the performance.
"It’s always so special to be able to come out and perform in front of them.”
The women’s hammer medals went the way of Finland’s Silja Kosonen, who claimed European gold with a championship-winning 76.28m, with Italy’s Sara Fantini taking silver with 74.35m and Norway’s Beatrice Nedberge Llano securing bronze with 72.88m.
Mark English (Finn Valley AC) produced one of the performances of the championships so far, storming to victory in his men’s 800m semi-final in a new European Championship record of 1:43.49.
The two-time European bronze medallist took more than three tenths of a second off one of the championships’ longest-standing records, improving on the 1:43.84 set by East Germany’s Olaf Beyer when winning the famous 1978 European final in Prague ahead of British greats Steve Ovett and Sebastian Coe.
English looked composed throughout before powering clear to secure his place in Thursday evening’s final in hugely impressive fashion.
“Every race I go into I’m excited. It’s about showing the work I’ve put in; I’ve worked hard,” English told RTÉ Sport.
“I saw the championship record before the start of the race and I thought it would go.
"It was nice to get it, but it’s a new race again tomorrow.” English will return for the European 800m final at 9.28pm on Thursday.
Rhasidat Adeleke (Tallaght AC) was equally impressive in booking her place in the women’s 200m final, winning her semi-final in a season’s best 22.43.
Adeleke produced a superb bend before using her 400m strength to maintain her advantage down the home straight.
Her 22.43 ranked as the second-fastest time across the semi-finals and sets up an eagerly anticipated final on Thursday evening.
“It felt good. I’m just having fun and enjoying the process,” said Adeleke when speaking to RTÉ.
“I’m taking everything in my stride and not allowing the pressure to consume me.
“I haven’t raced that much this year, so getting the rounds in is really important for me. I knew I could do something good.
"It’s just about believing in the training and believing in who I am.
“Sometimes when you’re down and things don’t go right, you can forget who you are. But I reminded myself: ‘Yes, you’re that girl.’”
Adeleke also reserved special praise for the sizeable Irish support inside Alexander Stadium.
“It’s unreal. It feels like Morton Stadium, it feels like Paris again. It’s something I always say to everyone – no one shows up like the Irish fans.
“There are always so many Irish supporters and it means the world.
"Hearing them cheering my name when I set up my blocks, I was thinking, ‘Let’s show them something!’”
"Lauren Roy (Fast Twitch AC) completed an impressive individual championship with another strong showing in the women’s 200m.
Having comfortably progressed from the morning heats in 23.20, Roy returned to clock 23.16 for fourth in her semi-final.
While not enough to advance to the final, the performance saw Roy finish 12th overall in Europe following a strong championship campaign across both the 100m and 200m. Focus will now turn to the women’s 4x100m on Saturday.
Earlier in the day, Sophie Becker (Raheny Shamrock AC) produced her best performance of the season when it mattered most to advance from the opening round of the women’s 400m.
Becker clocked a season’s best 52.28 to finish third in the first heat, securing her place among the 13 athletes progressing to Thursday’s semi-finals.
The Raheny Shamrock athlete will return to the track on Thursday afternoon looking to continue the momentum from an encouraging opening-round performance.
Sophie Becker – Women's 400m – Round One Heat 1 – 52.28 SB q (3rd, advanced to semi-final) Lauren Roy – Women's 200m – Round One Heat 1 – 23.20 (4th, advanced to semi-final) Mark English – Men's 800m – SF 2 – 1:43.49 CR (1st, advanced to final) Lauren Roy – Women’s 200m – SF 2 – 23.16 (4th, does not advance) Rhasidat Adeleke – Women’s 200m – SF 3 – 22.43 SB (1st, advanced to final) Nicola Tuthill – Women’s Hammer Throw – Final – 70.33m (5th)
Marcus Lawler – Men’s 200m – Round One – 11:05 Sophie Becker – Women’s 400m – SF – 12:45
Sean Aigboboh – Men’s 200m – SF – 20:05 Marcus Lawlor – Men’s 200m – SF – 20:05 * Mark English – Men's 800m – Final – 21:28 Rhasidat Adeleke – Women’s 200m – Final – 21:50 *
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